Parents

Parent Teacher Association

The PTA is a group consisting of all parents and legal guardians of QAS students as well as all QAS faculty and teachers. Our goal is to build community through extending relationships between QAS staff, parents, and others associated with the school and engage in community and fundraising events and activities that support QAS.

The PTA:

• Develops a partnership between school and home,
• Provides a forum for parents to have a voice in the school conversation (Advisory Conversations),
• Encourages engagement by all parents and teachers,
• Funds, plans, and carries out activities throughout the year,
• Establishes forums through which parents and teachers can exchange information.

Parent Volunteer Opportunities include:

• Class Parents
• PTA Events
• Help organise an event (or part of an event) in collaboration with QA Sidra
• Welcome Team
• Sponsorship and Fundraising
• Sharing your talents and passions as part of the co-curricular programme & after-school activities
• Engaging in monthly Advisory conversation with the QA Sidra school leadership
  ALL QAS Parents are members of the Parent Teacher Association

Learning Hub / Library Policies

To ensure we all know and understand the expectations for the use of the Learning Hub / Library resources, important information from our QA Sidra policies can be found below:

Borrowing Books

Throughout the year, students are encouraged to borrow books from the Learning Hub/Library. In Primary, students can borrow Arabic and English books for a 2-week period and return them when they visit the Learning Hub with their classes, or before/after school. In Secondary, students can borrow up to five resources for a two week period as well. Resources can be renewed one time for another two week period. In cases where another person has placed a HOLD on the resource, the renewal may be declined.

Overdue, Lost and Damaged Books

At the end of the academic year, all QA Sidra library books are collected and returned to the Learning Hub/Library in preparation for the inventory of all Arabic and English resources. After the inventory is completed, parents will receive an individual email reminding them about their son/daughter’s overdue books. If overdue books aren’t returned or outstanding fines haven’t been paid, students will have their end of year school report cards held back by QA Sidra until the books are returned or the fine has been paid.

At the end of each semester, overdue notices will be sent to parents. If any library resources are lost or damaged the following procedure applies:
The student is given a printout from the Librarian stating the book(s) that they must pay a fine for. The fine is 150 QR per book.
The student/parent will pay the money directly to the QA Sidra cashier (office is located upstairs in the Administration area of the Secondary campus). The cashier will send an e-receipt to the Librarians. Upon receiving the payment/e-receipt, the students may resume borrowing books.
If at a later date the student finds the lost (and undamaged) resource, the fine can be refunded. The student must return the book to the Learning Hub/Library and the Librarian will email the QA Sidra cashier to ask for a refund. The fine will be refunded via a bank e-transfer. Parents will need to inform the cashier of their bank transfer details. This will be possible only for the books lost /damaged and paid for during the current academic year.

• It is not possible for students to purchase a copy of a lost/damaged resource from another source and bring it to the Learning Hub/Library in lieu of paying a fine.
• Students should not attempt to fix damaged books at home, but rather inform the Librarians when the book is returned.

Home And School Partnerships

Home and school partnerships are vital for the success of our students. Working together, parents, teachers and students can ensure that each individual child experiences growth and realizes their potential. At Qatar Academy Sidra teachers collaborate with parents in a unified approach to find the most effective methods to help each child reach his/her academic potential is the cornerstone of our programme. Always operating with the best interest of the student in mind, we work together to help each child achieve academic, emotional and social success.

Qatar Academy Sidra facilitates a variety of opportunities for parents and teachers to build positive partnerships.

Parent Learning Opportunities

Parent presentations and workshops are given on a wide array of educational issues designed to help parents become familiar with special topics of interest, all with the aim of better serving each child and strengthening the bond between home and school. For example:

• Active Parenting
• Positive Adolescent Development and Restorative Practices
• What is bullying? What is not bullying?
• Making and Maintaining Relationships
• Home Tips: transforming family life into learning time
• Digital Citizenship
• Reinforcing Study Skills at Home
• MAP Scores for Parents
• Stress as a daily fact and how bullying can lead to stress
• Social Skills – Interventions for reinforcing them

Parent Conferences

Parent Conferences occur regularly throughout the school year. Each of these opportunities provide rich opportunities for parents to engage in their child’s learning journey. They include:

• Hopes and Concerns Conversations
• Parent / Teacher Conferences
• Student-involved Conferences
• Student Led Conferences